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Croc Lizard
The croc lizard, ancestor to the lizards found in and around Mossflower today, is an ancient relic of the time of the dinosaurs and could be related to them in some way. Inspired by the crocodile. Habitat: Swamps, rivers, lakes, and estuaries. It can be sometimes found in beaches, especially in saltwater close to shore. Diet: It eat anything it could snatch up in its jaws, including boon rats, ring-tailed tree mice, hoofed plains squirrels, elk hares, horned antelope rabbits, young woolly hedgehogs, giant ground moles, armored-horned voles, hopping pouched dormice, dodo dippers, ring-necked sparrows, great gulls, young wandering gannets, frigate magpies, crowned-whooping herons, hooded-rattle slowworms, young okapi-horses, crustaceans, fish (including shark pikes), monitor newts, and young of other predators, including dragon adderondas. It will even eat carrion. Predators: The only predators adults face are Haast's red kites, dragon adderondas, and sabre-tooth otters. It eggs and young are vulnerable to attacks by marabou ravens, terror owls, condor rooks, Daggett's secretary buzzards, monitor newts, burrowing shrews, hooded-rattle slowworms, and frigate magpies. Enemies/Competitors: It competes with dragon adderondas over food and territory in rivers and swamps, though it is wise enough to stay out of the snake's way. It also competes with sabre-tooth otters and Haast's red kites over prey. Croc lizards and dirk-tooth ferrets are known for killing each other. The croc lizard also has to be careful when hunting boon rats, for that the dominant males can and will break a croc lizard's jaw and kill it, ripping it limb from limb. But croc lizards do have the advantage when in the water, therefore it could tear up even a dominant male boon rat bit by bit. The croc lizard will also attack almost any predator, including mountain scimitar stoats, thylac-polecats, dire foxes, mega wildcats, and laughing weasels, although such predators are not usual prey for the croc lizard. Temperament: Aggressive, opportunistic, clever, and relentless. It can also be territorial, usually it's the big males defending territories from other croc lizards. It is also a patient ambusher, waiting for the right moment to strike while sneaking up close to prey that comes near the water for a drink, with only its eyes, nostrils, and upper snout in the surface, looking like a log until it is close enough to catch its target. In hard and lean times, when prey is extremely scarce, croc lizards can also cannibalize smaller members of its kind. Habits: Diurnal (though will hunt at night) and solitary, though they gather in large groups when a large herd of prey is crossing the river to greener pastures. Large groups can provide an advantage, especially when a large feast is provided, they end up helping each other have a bite by twisting, turning, and ripping chunks of flesh off the carcass. It hibernates during winter and the dry season. Interesting Facts: Like the crocodile and alligator today, the croc lizard uses the death roll to tear apart its victims into chunks and pieces of meat because, like the crocodilians, they can't chew their food, they can only swallow. Category:Reptiles